So another book gets turned into a movie. Up until recently I had never heard of Maurice Sendak or his classic children's book, Where the wild things are. So here comes the movie adaption inspired by a book that is only a handful of pages long. It has disaster written all over it. A very short story converted into a movie that is 20 minutes shy of 2 hours. All from the mind of Spike Jonze who’s many credits include Jackass, of all things.
And the story is based around a young lad called Max who disappears into his own imaginary world, after having a typical temper tantrum with his Mum. Max runs off into the night and then his imagination takes over, as he cools off. He discovers a little sail boat and sails off into the night. He eventually discovers land and this is the place, where the wild things are. He quickly makes friends, after convincing these giant walking carpets that they shouldn’t eat him as he is a king. From there he becomes the king of the carpet lookalikes , and claims to solve all their problems. And that's the story. Its littered with plenty of child like behaviour, that we were all once guilty of which includes forts and favourite friends, and more besides. But it is all presented in a way that is incredibly engrossing, and whilst you acknowledge its child like behaviour you can’t help but feel its almost real.
When I originally saw the trailer and first caught a glimpse of the Wild things, I have to admit I wasn’t at all impressed. They looked like a few simple carpet puppets, which looked to throw the film industry back 30 years. But don’t let the trailers sway you. The Wild Things are, simply put, out of this world. Their expressions are second to none and you instantly get an emotional connection with them. The Jim Henson Creature shop, who provided the animatronic suits, have really created their finest moment. The range of emotions and subtle movements here are second to none. And their respective voice actors, including James Gandolfini give a wonderful performance.But its not only the Wild Things that gave a superb performance, Max Records who plays Max is the next breakout child star. If there’s not an Oscar nom for him, then they surely is no justice in the movie world. His performance is captivating and at times almost hypnotic. It really is that good.
Where the wild things are, is a pretty deep movie going experience. While it is based on a kids book, this is not like any kids movie you have ever seen before. Its dark at times and I feel the very younger viewers might need a change of underpants at least once. It may be a little too arty in style to keep the really young engaged and on occasion it can come across a little flat and bland at times but not enough to deter from the overall experience. Where the wild things are will take you back to your own childhood and, while it won’t last long, it will leave an impression!
And the story is based around a young lad called Max who disappears into his own imaginary world, after having a typical temper tantrum with his Mum. Max runs off into the night and then his imagination takes over, as he cools off. He discovers a little sail boat and sails off into the night. He eventually discovers land and this is the place, where the wild things are. He quickly makes friends, after convincing these giant walking carpets that they shouldn’t eat him as he is a king. From there he becomes the king of the carpet lookalikes , and claims to solve all their problems. And that's the story. Its littered with plenty of child like behaviour, that we were all once guilty of which includes forts and favourite friends, and more besides. But it is all presented in a way that is incredibly engrossing, and whilst you acknowledge its child like behaviour you can’t help but feel its almost real.
When I originally saw the trailer and first caught a glimpse of the Wild things, I have to admit I wasn’t at all impressed. They looked like a few simple carpet puppets, which looked to throw the film industry back 30 years. But don’t let the trailers sway you. The Wild Things are, simply put, out of this world. Their expressions are second to none and you instantly get an emotional connection with them. The Jim Henson Creature shop, who provided the animatronic suits, have really created their finest moment. The range of emotions and subtle movements here are second to none. And their respective voice actors, including James Gandolfini give a wonderful performance.But its not only the Wild Things that gave a superb performance, Max Records who plays Max is the next breakout child star. If there’s not an Oscar nom for him, then they surely is no justice in the movie world. His performance is captivating and at times almost hypnotic. It really is that good.
Where the wild things are, is a pretty deep movie going experience. While it is based on a kids book, this is not like any kids movie you have ever seen before. Its dark at times and I feel the very younger viewers might need a change of underpants at least once. It may be a little too arty in style to keep the really young engaged and on occasion it can come across a little flat and bland at times but not enough to deter from the overall experience. Where the wild things are will take you back to your own childhood and, while it won’t last long, it will leave an impression!
